JAN 24

Prime Minister Dr. Keith Mitchell has congratulated Minister for Finance, Anthony Boatswain and Public Officers in the Ministry of Finance for "exploring new avenues of information sharing with the public".
Addressing Tuesday's National Consultation on the 2004 Budget, the Prime Minister expressed appreciation for the invitation to attend and address the Consultation held at the Grenada Trade Centre.

Dr. Mitchell noted that the proceedings have been organised in "a most comprehensive manner and I believe this goes very well for the future of the consultative process".

"The fact that we have Working Groups with Ministerial
Representatives, alongside Resource Persons from the Public Service, will certainly lead to greater input", he added.

The one-day consultation is part of an ongoing series of consultations by government, which also includes participation on radio and television call-in programmes.
The consultations are organised by the Ministry of Finance to ensure input from all stakeholders in the Budget which is expected to be presented to the House of Representatives before the end of February.

Noting that the consultation is very much in keeping with the ruling New National Party (NNP) Government's ongoing commitment to the consultative process, Prime Minister made reference to the decision of the Official National Democratic Congress (NDC) Opposition not to attend the proceedings.

"To those who accepted the invitation and are here with us today, on behalf of the Government, I extend a very warm welcome. The Government looks forward to your input and ideas", he said.

"To those who chose not to attend, I can only say it is regrettable that you have opted not to involve yourselves in
the process of engagement on this very important and timely subject", he added.

The Opposition Leader decided not to attend the consultation on the grounds that the Prime Minister himself and not the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Finance who should have extended the invitation to him, as well as the failure of government to provide much needed data on the performance of the economy. A wide cross-section of the Grenadian community was invited to attend the Consultation.

Participants included representatives from financial institutions, non-governmental organisations, statutory bodies, trade unions, the private sector, the media, political parties and religious groups, as well as Public Officers.
In his address, Prime Minister Mitchell said he welcomed new ideas from participants, as well as suggested modifications to Government's programmes.
He also addressed the issue of revenue and requested ideas on how Government can ensure more people "pay their fair share of taxes".

"I expect many of you have come with your wish lists_ and we are anxious to hear of your priorities. However, it is my hope that you also provide us with ideas about how Government can earn higher levels of income, as well as ways by which we can improve revenue collection", he said.

Dr. Mitchell noted that this is particularly critical in the context of Regional and Hemispheric Developments, the establishment of the Caribbean Single Market and Economy (CSME) and, eventually, the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) which have serious implications with respect to Government revenues.

"When the CSME is fully operational, the revenues Government collects at our ports and other areas of entry, as a result of regional trade, will be substantially reduced", he said.

"When the FTAA is established, the revenues we now
collect at our borders on goods and services from countries in this Hemisphere will also be substantially reduced", he added.

Prime Minister Mitchell pointed out that these developments will result in Grenada having to attain more revenue from "internal transactions", noting that government's basic philosophy is that people will have to pay for services.

He also said that the philosophy of "free meals" and "free books for everyone" is flawed and will not work.
Dr. Mitchell indicated that those who can afford to pay for services will be required to do so, in order to assist the poor and vulnerable, who are unable to pay.

His remarks about 'free school books' is a clear attack on the promise made by the NDC during the campaign for the November 27 general election.